


Firecracker Wishes

by smittenbritain



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Grand Theft Auto Setting, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Just Add Kittens, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-13
Updated: 2018-04-13
Packaged: 2019-04-22 07:42:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,112
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14304012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smittenbritain/pseuds/smittenbritain
Summary: Geoff merely raised his eyebrows and smiled. Jeremy was starting to realise that the whole crew was in on some kind of secret here. “I can’t say anything so don’t ask. You’ll find out later. Happy birthday!”





	Firecracker Wishes

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Krembearry](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Krembearry/gifts).



> A belated birthday gift for the wonderful [krem](https://krembearrysiping.tumblr.com/)!

Jeremy woke gradually, his face half buried in his pillow and his arm twisted awkwardly underneath it. He felt the telltale tingle of having rested on it for too long, but he was still too comfortable to move much, so he just adjusted enough to free up the blood flow again. Then, when he was settled, he realised that at some point during the night the sheets had fallen to twist around his waist, leaving him tangled and too hot. Grunting, Jeremy kicked them off, and he sighed as cool air met his skin.

Usually, he wasn’t one for lingering in bed. Most mornings, Jeremy would even head to the penthouse’s gym to make a good start on his day.

This morning was different, though. Jeremy was allowed to indulge today - had been told by Geoff, in fact, that he was to relax and make the most of it. Given the invitation, Jeremy was only too happy to do just that; sure, he could get up and go work out, but it was nice to just stretch luxuriously and slump back into the mattress again for once.

Idly, Jeremy reached over to the other half of the bed, and when he found it was empty he simply let his hand rest there lazily. It was a shame that Ryan had slipped out without waking him up first.

Eventually, boredom started to trickle in as his sleepiness faded, so Jeremy hauled himself out of bed. He stretched again, easing the ache out of his muscles, and then went through the motions of getting dressed - only he chose pyjamas over his usual orange and purple style.

He had full intentions of grabbing some breakfast and sinking onto the couch, but the moment he left his and Ryan’s room there was an arm around his shoulders. “Happy birthday, Lil J!” Michael said, hugging him tight to his side. “About time you got up! Been fuckin’ waitin’ to get this party started.”

Jeremy gently extricated himself from Michael’s grip, enough that he could peer warily through to the living room. “What party?”

_“Well,_ you’ll see.” Michael gave him a grin, that signature _‘I know something you don’t know’_ Michael grin, and pushed him towards the living room. “Go have breakfast and shit. When you’re ready, we’re gonna go do some fun stuff.”

So much for a lazy morning. Jeremy shuffled through to the kitchen and sat at the bar to eat his cereal, idly scrolling through the news on his phone. There wasn’t anything particularly interesting - no headlines about the Fakes, though Jeremy spotted mentions of a couple other gangs. He still somehow ended up on cat videos before he was done eating, though.

As he stood up to clean up his mess, Geoff swooped in and scooped it up from under his nose. Jeremy stared at him, his spoon still in his hand. “What’re you doing?”

Geoff plucked the spoon out from between his fingers, grinning. “Cleaning up.”

Jeremy frowned. “I can wash my own bowl, though.”

“You’ve got other stuff to do, I can get the cereal bowl.” Shrugging him off, Geoff turned away to the sink to rinse them. He shot Jeremy a smile when he simply stayed put, looking utterly baffled. “It’s your birthday and there’s shit in motion that you don’t even _know_ about, Jeremy. Might wanna go get dressed.”

With a heavy sigh, Jeremy got to his feet, tucking his phone back into his pocket. “I thought I was supposed to have the day off?”

“Okay, so maybe I lied,” Geoff admitted. “Maybe someone clued me in on something last minute. Either way, Jack and Gavin are waiting, so you’d better get moving before Gav starts getting impatient.”

“Fine, fine.” Before he headed back to his room, though, Jeremy paused and turned back to Geoff again. “Hey, have you seen Ryan?”

Geoff merely raised his eyebrows and smiled. Jeremy was starting to realise that the whole crew was in on some kind of secret here. “I can’t say anything so don’t ask. You’ll find out later. Happy birthday!”

* * *

Jack and Gavin were in the crew’s garage, chatting away between Michael’s chrome Adder and one of Jeremy’s brightly coloured monstrosities. The moment he joined them, Gavin was hanging off of him, delightedly cheering his name. “Kept us waiting, Jeremy,” he tutted. “About bloody time you joined us!”

Next to him, Jack was giggling. “He means _‘happy birthday, Jeremy’,”_ he said, adding in a poor attempt at a British accent for good measure.

“Oi!” Gavin let go of Jeremy just so he could bump into Jack, but it was warm and fond and far less rough than he’d be with maybe Michael or Geoff. “Happy birthday, Jeremy,” he repeated, beaming at him. “Now come on, in you get, we’ve got time to kill before we can-” Abruptly, Gavin closed his mouth, his eyes wide.

Jeremy raised his eyebrows. “Before we can what?”

Jack wrapped an arm around Gavin to gently nudge him towards one of the four-seaters. “Don’t you worry, Jeremy. We’ve got a surprise for you first.”

“Should I be worried?”

“No, of course not!” Gavin chirped. He beamed at Jeremy, bright and sweet. “When have I ever given you reason to worry?”

“Literally all the time,” Jeremy replied as he climbed into the back.

Gavin could only cock his head and nod, laughing. “Yeah, alright, fair point. Don’t worry about this, though!”

When they arrived, Jeremy had to agree that he really had no reason to worry. Jack and Gavin were cryptic on the drive - they gave little away about their destination or what was coming later in the day - but Jeremy knew where they were the instant they arrived.

The crew liked to make little gestures of kindness. They had far more money than they knew what to do with most of the time, and there was only so much that they could spend on new rocket launchers or mods for their cars. A few healthy, anonymous donations stopped Gavin from complaining about the lack of pets in the penthouse for a short while, at least, once he realised he could sneak in and visit.

And that was just what they did for Jeremy. Jack politely talked their way in, and within minutes he found himself sat on the floor with kittens. His curiosity about the rest of the day melted away as the little bundles of fluff crawled onto his knees, mewing and swatting at the fingers he dangled in front of them. Similarly trapped, Jack and Gavin were a few feet away playing with a couple with string toys and rattling balls.

“I want her,” Gavin whined, pouting as he stroked the fluffy black kitten sleeping on his thigh. “Jack, can we keep her?”

“I’m not the one you have to convince.” Jack leaned over, stroking a thumb gently between the kitten’s ears. “You know why Geoff says we can’t have pets.”

“Doesn’t mean we have to listen to him though,” Gavin muttered.

Jeremy snickered on Gavin’s other side. “I mean, it _is_ my birthday…”

As Gavin squealed with barely repressed glee, Jeremy saw Jack holding back a smile. He was laughing quietly, his shoulders shaking. “If we had the time today, I would absolutely let you guys sneak kittens home.”

“Jack,” Gavin huffed. _“Lovely_ Jack. Please can Jeremy bring home this kitten so I can steal it?”

“Please?” Jeremy leaned in as well, his eyes wide as he begged.

But Jack wasn’t deterred - or, at least, not entirely. His eyes twinkled as he said, “Not today, no. But… maybe we can say we’re interested in her.”

“Good enough!” Gavin cheered, and then he immediately quieted down when the kitten’s ears twitched at the noise. Whispering, he added, “You’re gonna be the most spoiled, most loved kitty.”

Jeremy reached over, gently petting the kitten’s fluffy fur. “And we’ll bring home some friends, too,” he added in a murmur, and it set Jack and Gavin giggling all over again.

* * *

It took a while to tear them away from the kittens, but then Jeremy was handed off to Geoff and Michael again. He stayed tight-lipped about the plan to bring home pets as he waved goodbye to Jack and Gavin; there was no way he was giving it away and ruining their chances.

Geoff and Michael took him to Vespucci, where they wandered along the tacky shops as the day wore on, buying shitty food from stands and trying on masks when they reached their favourite supplier. Jeremy didn’t even notice how quickly time passed; he was lost in giggling as Michael put on _yet another_ rubber horse head and made some kind of ridiculous or rude gesture. Geoff was almost in tears next to him, clutching his chest and wheezing as he picked out the next one for Michael to try on.

As evening set in, lights popped up along the pier, and the fairground at the end slowly came to life. Even with Los Santos in the background, it was somewhat beautiful at night. There were distant shrieks from the rides, music was playing faintly, and there was the sweet smell of food still hanging heavy in the air. These were the things that Jeremy loved about Los Santos.

Jeremy kind of wished Ryan was here to laugh and joke with them. He wasn’t sure what had kept him away today of all days, but Jeremy was determined not to let it get to him.

Almost like he knew what Jeremy was thinking, Michael draped an arm over his shoulder and pointed. “Look.”

Out on the beach, there was a familiar figure. He was standing by what looked like a blanket and a backpack, and he was waving over at their little group. Silently, Michael gave him a gentle push towards him, and Jeremy found himself jogging over to Ryan with a wide smile.

Ryan received him with a warm hug and a quiet chuckle against his temple. “Happy birthday, Jeremy. Sorry I wasn’t around for a lot of it, I promise there’s a reason.”

He sat them down on the blanket, handing Jeremy a beer before he could tuck himself into Ryan’s side. It was already balmy out tonight, but Jeremy still sought out Ryan’s warmth like a moth to a flame. “Is this the secret surprise everyone’s been hinting about?” Jeremy asked, sipping his beer.

Ryan swallowed his own mouthful - diet coke, of course; no beer for him - and just smiled. “You’ll see.”

“Oh my God, that’s all I’ve been hearing all day!” Playfully, he gave Ryan a gentle elbow in the side. “I wanna know already!”

“You will!” Ryan laughed. “I promise! Just a little longer.”

As curious as he was, Jeremy was content to rest against Ryan and be patient. Besides, it was nice to quietly recount his day to his boyfriend and simply sit side by side with him, even though Ryan remained silent on what _he’d_ spent his time doing. Every little nudge Jeremy gave him was met with a simple, sweet smile, and more assurances that it would be any minute now.

When Ryan’s phone buzzed during a lull in conversation, Ryan only glanced at it for a moment. He bumped his shoulder against Jeremy’s then, and murmured, “Look up.”

Overhead, there was a sharp, loud pop. When Jeremy turned his head, he saw a great shower of green sparks in the sky, scattering across the now inky blackness before dissipating again. It was quickly followed up by a second firework, whistling as it soared up into the sky and burst. If Jeremy listened close enough, he was sure he could hear Michael and Gavin whooping from further down the beach, suspiciously in time with when the fireworks shot into the air.

“You set up a _fireworks_ display?” Jeremy breathed. He would have turned to gape at Ryan, but he was enraptured by the colours up above - mostly greens and whites, though there was the occasional red or gold mixed in. _“That’s_ what you were doing all day?”

Ryan hugged him closer to his side with his arm, and he gently pressed his lips against Jeremy’s temple. Jeremy could feel him smiling. “Happy birthday.”

It was absolutely worth the wait. Having Ryan pressed up against his side at last made the torture of the wait fade away, leaving only awe and contentment behind. As the last of the sparks settled, the gathered citizens applauding at the impromptu display, Jeremy turned to cup Ryan’s cheek and kiss him squarely on the mouth. “Thank you,” he breathed, parting from Ryan only for a moment, before Ryan swooped down to meet him again.


End file.
